Things to Do in Brittany, France: City Guides

Brittany is a historic region in northwestern France, shaped by Celtic migration, maritime connections and a strong local identity. From its regional capital Rennes to the walled port of Saint-Malo and the medieval heritage of Vannes, the region is worth visiting for the way its language, landscapes and history remain visible in everyday life. Neywo offers free audio guides for 3 cities in Brittany, covering 157 narrated places in total through 8 walking tours, with narration available in 11 languages.

What to see and do in Brittany

Discover Brittany’s Celtic history

Brittany’s name comes from the Britons, a Celtic people who lived across much of Great Britain. Between the fifth and seventh centuries, Anglo-Saxon invasions pushed many of them towards western Armorica, the land now known as Brittany. Their arrival helps explain the region’s distinct historical character and its continuing cultural connections with Wales and Cornwall.

Small kingdoms once divided the peninsula before a united Kingdom of Brittany emerged in the ninth century. Norse raids and occupation then caused widespread destruction early in the following century. From the middle of that century, Brittany became a vassal state of France as the Duchy of Brittany.

That history still influences how the region defines itself. Today’s administrative Brittany has four departments and Rennes as its capital, while Loire-Atlantique—including Nantes—belonged to traditional Brittany and Nantes was a historical capital of the duchy. Whether Loire-Atlantique should be reunited with the present region has been debated for decades.

Explore Rennes, the regional capital

Rennes lies in eastern Brittany and is the region’s capital and largest city. Its historic places reflect the political, religious and architectural history of Brittany. Neywo’s guide to Rennes includes 104 narrated places, among them Rennes Cathedral, the Rennes Opera House, the Abbey of Saint-Georges and the Église Saint-Germain de Rennes.

The city is a useful starting point for understanding Brittany as a whole. It connects the region’s historic duchy, its religious heritage and its modern administrative role, while also showing how Breton history is expressed through urban landmarks.

Walk through Saint-Malo

On Brittany’s northern coast, Saint-Malo offers a different perspective on the region’s relationship with the sea. The city’s narrated places include Saint-Malo Cathedral, the Église Saint-Sauveur de Saint-Malo, Église Saint-Ideuc and the Église Sainte-Croix de Saint-Servan.

Neywo’s Saint-Malo guide covers 27 narrated places. A visit here brings Brittany’s maritime setting into focus: the English Channel lies to the north, and the region’s history has long been connected to travel, movement and the sea.

Visit Vannes and its historic landmarks

Vannes is another important place to include in a Brittany itinerary. Its 26 narrated places include Château-Gaillard, Vannes Cathedral, Château de l’Hermine and Vannes et sa femme.

The city helps show the variety of Brittany’s historic towns. Alongside religious buildings and castles, its landmarks preserve stories connected to local civic life and the region’s former political structures. Explore the city with the Neywo guide to Vannes.

Notice Breton and Gallo in the landscape

Language is one of the clearest signs of Brittany’s regional identity. In western, or Lower, Brittany, Breton remained the dominant language until the middle of the twentieth century. It is a Celtic language related to Cornish and Welsh.

Eastern Brittany has its own traditional language, Gallo. Unlike Breton, Gallo is an Oïl language, but it also has regional recognition and is being revived. Breton and Gallo can appear alongside French on road signs and in town and city names. They are taught in some schools, while folklore associations and clubs support their continued use.

For visitors, this creates a layered written landscape. A place may have a French name beside a Breton or Gallo one, with each version reflecting a different part of Brittany’s history.

Experience a region shaped by the sea

The English Channel borders Brittany to the north, the Celtic Sea to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. All four of the region’s departments reach the coast, so water is never far away.

This setting gives Brittany an oceanic climate. Prevailing northwestern winds soften changes in temperature, while southern areas are drier and the far northwest has fewer hot days than the southeast. The region’s weather is closely connected to the meeting of land, channel and ocean.

Brittany’s neighbouring regions are Normandy to the northeast and Pays de la Loire to the southeast. Its position at France’s western edge gives the region an outward-facing character, with the coast influencing both its environment and its history.

Understand Brittany’s religious heritage

Brittany was historically a stronghold of the Roman Catholic Church, and church attendance tended to be higher than the national average. That influence has declined in recent years, but religious buildings remain an important part of the region’s heritage.

The churches and cathedrals found in Rennes, Saint-Malo and Vannes offer concrete examples of this history. They also sit alongside the region’s language revival and local cultural associations, showing how older traditions continue to shape Brittany even as the region changes.

Explore Brittany with Neywo’s free audio guide

Neywo lets you explore Brittany independently with free audio guides for 3 cities: Rennes, Saint-Malo and Vannes. Together, they cover 157 narrated places across 8 walking tours. Narration is available in 11 languages.

The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Download Neywo to explore Brittany’s cities while walking, and discover more of France through its places and stories.